Ghosts Solutions
by MindscapeGuide
Summary: When ghosts are nearby, who you're gonna call? Well in this city you can count with: a witch doctor, a musician, a scientific and a lady with half-dead to protect you! Just don't expect it to be free. AU.
1. Prologue

Are you afraid of ghosts? That may be a estrange question for some people, after all, ghost aren't real, right? That's just logical, but even yet, when you're in the night and hear a weird sound in the darkness and no matter how much you look you can't see anybody nearby, don't you wonder?

Spirits, monsters, demons, ghosts, they aren't real, but yet here are so much information about them, how find them, how to summon them, how to capture them, it's really possible to have so much information, to have so many stories about something not real?

So let me ask you a question, if there's something strange in your neighborhood, if you're seeing things running through your head, and you're all alone, who you're call? Well in the city of Fantomille in Louisiana, there are some options.

* * *

Swamps in the outside of the city, almost midnight

"I can't believe we're doing this!" Officer Victor complains while walking through the vegetation, using his flashlight to make sure of not tripping on anything .

"Oh don't by a cry baby Vic; this can't the worst thing you had done." Officer Amelia tried to smile while avoiding the branches in the ground, the last thing she needed was to fall in the water.

"Cry baby? We're following a bald guy doing some voodoo thing, trying to find a dead body, and you expect me too alright with this?"

"Now, now, Charles had help us many times in the past, his methods can be a little weird-"

"He's shaking a bag with bones!"

"-Listen, we had been having troubles with this guy for months now, he had killed at least 7 persons already, and no matter how much it bother us, we don't have any clues of how to find him. Charles has a unique way of help, true, but he's a good person and he does a good job."

"Well dat is a very nice thing to say Amy cher." A voice said just from behind of Officer Victor.

"JESUS CHRIST!" Yell the officer while jumping a little, immediately he aims his flashlight at the source of the voice, only to find his guide, Charles Leroy, with a big smile in his face, his dark skin making it easy to hide in the shadows.

"Be de way Vic, ain't bald, I shave my hair, is more fresh dat way." Charles keep smiling while putting a hand on the shoulder of the officer.

Amelia gives a sigh of frustration after making sure nothing bad had happen."Chalers! Please don't do that! And I'd told you before, while working I'm Officer Amelia".

The young man raised his arms in sight of defeat. "Alright, alright, Officer Amelia, but you were so slow, that I wanted to make you shake you a little bit" He walks to the front of the group to keep guiding them, while keeping a little smirk.

"Never the least, that's not a excu-" Amelia scolding was interrupted by another yell from Officer Victor.

"How the hell did you do that!? You were in front of us! How did walk from behind!?"

Charles just keeps smiling. "When you spend so much time like me in the bayou, you learn how to move thought it, you learn to listen."

"Oh more of that voodoo thing? That's not real kid, no matter how creepy this place is, there's nothing super natural about it" The officer grunts, annoyed for getting scared that easily.

For a second Charles smile dropped, but it came back almost as fast. "This ain't 'voodoo' Officer, just a little respek for de swamp. And it doesn't matter if you believe in it or not, voodoo, hoodoo, magic, spirits, dat's all real, beware of de things dat live in the dark is what my mama always said, and you should follow dat advice too."

"Yeah right, I will believe it when I see it."

Before the discussion could continue Amelia interrupts both of them. "That's enough you two, we're here looking for corpses, remember?"

Charles could help but scratch the back of his head sheepishly. "Right, well, we should be nearby, here's a huge concentration of dark energy very close."

Victor looked properly scolded too. "Ok sorry, but come on Flores, you can honestly say that you beli… Holy Mother of God." The Officer's flashlight had pass over one the trees and the he couldn't believe what was on it.

Amelia and Charles too have stopped to look in what had startled the man, and what a horrible view it was, the tree in front of them have at least 9 people hanging front its branches, some kids, some adults, men, women, it seems like the murder didn't care as long as they were human.

Amelia fells sick with just seeing it, how could someone do something like this? What kind of horrible human being could do this?

Charles had seen some pretty creepy things in his live, but he has to admit that this thing is probably in the top 5.

Victor, Victor just wants to get away from this fucking forest.

A horrible yell from deep into the swamp startle the three of them out of their thoughts.

"Ahhhhhh! GET AWAY FROM ME, GET AWAY FROM ME YOU DEMONS!" A man suddenly appears, running through the trees, running away from, what it looks like silhouettes of different people, floating in the air.

The silhouettes begin to surround the man, closing any route of escape for him, and then they start getting closer and closer, all of them whispering strange things.

"No, please no, I don't want to die."

"Please, I beg you I have a wife a kind."

"I'm scare; please go away, I WANT MY MOMMY!"

One after other, the 'people' keeps whispering.

Amelia finally recovers of the shock and begins to walk right to scene of madness. "We need to get man of there."

But before she could get any closer Charles grabs her from behind and hold her in place. "Whoa, whoa, Cher dat's not a good idea, I tink we're watching a little bit of ghost justice right there, it seems dat de victims wanted a little bit of vengeance, you don't want to be between a ghost and dey reason of existence, believe me."

"Wait, so you're saying that that's the murder? That with more reason we have to go, we have to arrest him, right Vic?... Vic."

Officer Victor Jones had seen a lot of thing in his life, from the simple of thieves to the crazy of murders, but never in his life he would had thought of say what he was about to say. "I think we should listen to the voodoo guy this time."

The ghosts have finally reached the murderer -that had been yelling all this time- then they begin to raise him in the air, right to tree with all their bodies, one the kids took a rope that wasn't been use and put it around his neck, then all the ghosts pulled his body down.

The murder keep yelling just for a few seconds more, then, here was only silence in the bayou.

…Silence that Charles broke after a few seconds. "Well, do you believe now Officer?"

Victor took a moment before answering. "Kid… You can release Officer Flores now."

An apartment in the middle of the city, a few hours before noon

Lisa was a simple old lady, with her kids never visiting her and her husband dead, she lived her days in a simple routing, wake up, go to the bathroom, prepare food, them watch some TV, then maybe talk with neighborhoods a little, prepare dinner and go to sleep, a simple life to a simple old lady.

One morning though, she wakes up to a very strange surprise, the ghost of her dead husband sitting at the kitchen table, the poor dear immediately go to the phone to call for help, as soon as she recovers from passing out of course.

When she was already at the phone she stopped, who would she call? Should she be calling someone to begin with? Sure the ghost of her dead husband was there –if she wasn't going crazy anyway- but he wasn't doing anything bad, or anything at all honestly. Suddenly inspiration strike her, she remembered a commercial that she heard some while age very late at night, something about soul music, she couldn't remember the name, but the numbers were another story, it was like they were jumping to her mind.

She pressed the number and wait for a few second before a smooth voice answered in the other side.

"Hello this is Soul Music, how can I help you?"

Lisa waited a hour in front of the door of her apartment –a very far of her kitchen- then she heard a knock at the door, she open it as fast as she could.

At the door was a man that looked at his thirties, with a long jacked and a guitar at his back, he had a serene smile at his face, his brown eyes showing empathy for the old lady in front of him.

"Hello, are you Lisa?"

"Ye… Yeah" She could help but to be a little nervous, after all, even if he wanted to her help, she didn't know what he was going to do to her husband's… ghost.

"My name is Gaston, you don't need to worry I promise that everything will be alright." He said keeping his smile all the time.

In the end Lisa let him in and brings him to kitchen.

The man begun to watch the ghost from different angles, moving all around the kitchen, stopping to hum and murmur a little, then suddenly he clapped with a little. "Aha!" Preparing his guitar to play, he asked Lisa a question. "Lisa, do you know why ghosts exist."

Of course she could only shake her head; she didn't even know that ghosts were real after all.

"Well, there all different reason honestly, but the most common one is if the person died with unfinished business, the strongest the desire for complete it, the stronger the ghost, now your husband ghost is very weak, I assume that he simply wanted to be with you always."

Lisa covered her mouth with her hand and begun to cry. "Oh dear, will always be with you."

"Don't worry, the good thing about this kind of is that they can be helped to move on with a little of harmonic magic." As soon as he said that he began to play his guitar.

Lisa for some reason found the song nostalgic, she was sure that she had never hear it before, and event yet, she could stop thinking of old memories, memories that she share with her husband.

She was in trance by the sound for a few minutes, when she noticed that the ghost was suddenly shining, she had to cover her eyes for a moment and when she opens them he was gone.

Gaston stopped playing. "Now he can rest in peace."

An old fire department, high noon

Expensive suit, very realistic wig and a red face; those were the characteristics that the old business man Isaac Spengler has at the moment. "Ophelia Athena Spengler! Did you waste all the money that I give you in this!?" He said opening his arms to signal all the machines and equines that were all around then.

The young scientific answered without looking at her uncle, too busy making sure that everything was in working condition. "It wasn't a waste uncle, the parts that I needed to make my inventions were quite expensive, but in the end it will all worth it."

"Oh? And what invention cost more than fifty thousand dollars?" Asked Isaac, the red in his face was fading a little, his mind to busy trying to find the logic in her niece obvious madness to be angry.

"My ecto-generator of course." Was the answer of Ophelia, her tone was simple; she has been waiting a long time to finally create her best creation.

"Ghosts… Did you waste all that money in ghosts!? I thought we had been over this! I thought you were going to follow your father legacy!" His face was even redder than in the beginning.

She couldn't help but to sigh in frustration, finally stopping to watch his uncle right to his face. " _This_ is our family legacy uncle; the only thing that my father did was create a better type of smoothie for your company, what grandpa Egon was investigating could change the world!"

"The invention of your father helped our whole family, really helped! The only thing that my father accomplished with his wild fantasies was to put us in a horrible debt, and it was thanks to your father that we could keep going!" He yelled getting more close to Ophelia.

The young woman wouldn't give up that easily though, she would prove everybody the genius of her grandfather. "They weren't fantasies! Is all in the books, the equations, the analysis, ghosts are real! And if we can capture and harness their power we could solve the energy problem of the world, forever!"

Isaac took a big breath. "Your parents aren't coming back honey, I had done my best to try to give you all you need, I didn't yell at you when you decide to cut your hair that short, even though you looked just like your mother like that, but if you think that you could see them again with this ghosts thing the-"

"Isn't like that!" Ophelia yelled, interrupting her uncle. "I know they're dead, I get that, is just… I want our family name to mean something more than just _smoothies_ , dad only did that for the money to help us, you now that he was very smart, he could had done something amazing but now he will only be remember as the _smoothie genius,_ I don't want that as our legacy, and I only cut my hair because I almost burn it." She whispered the last part, her eyes getting a little misty.

Isaac hugged her niece, petting her head.

"One chance… give me one chance to capture a ghosts." The young woman was doing her best to not cry, but she couldn't stop her voice to weaver a little.

"…Very well, one chance."


	2. Chapter 1-1

Saint Elizabeth's Public Library, Late night

Ophelia had spent a long time of her life in libraries, it has been her home away from home, so many information, so many stories, she still could remember her grandpa telling her that she could learn almost everything in there, so when her first ghost hunting job was in the local library she thought it was destiny –if she believed those thing of course- but she had to admit that in the dark and with the knowledge that it was haunted, the building that was her safe place for so long… was quite scary.

"Come on, you can do it, is just a ghosts, is just the soul of a dead person that refuse to go to the other side, nothing to be afraid of." Taking a big breath she begun to walk to the entrance and knock at the door.

After a few second passed and nothing happened she was about to knock again when she felt a tap in her shoulder from behind, Ophelia would never admit yelled like a little girl.

"Oh dear, I'm so sorry miss! I was just waiting in the other side of the build when a heard you knock, are you the ghost hunter?" The man that had touched her was very old, his hair was already white, and had big glasses, but here was something in his eyes, they seemed… wary.

Ophelia managed to answer back, after caching her breath. "Wh… what? Oh, yeah, yeah that's me, I'm Ophelia Spengler, I'm here to take care of your ghost troubles!" She finished standing firm, trying to appear professional, or as professional as she could look after yelling for nothing.

"Oh! Good, good, I'm Marshall Smalls, I was so worry with this, but I'm sure that you could fix this problem in no time, you look quite capable."

The young woman blush a little with compliment, she just wasn't used to people outside her family to praise her. "Thanks! I- I mean, thanks, um –kof- Well, why don't you tell me how it all begun."

In that question the old man raise her eyes in eyes, while doing his best to remember the events of the day. "It all begun in the afternoon, it was a calm day honestly, nothing out of the ordinary, maybe there was a little less people than usual, but nothing estrange, then, suddenly here were yells everywhere, some bookshelves fell to the ground, people running all around, it was complete chaos! Then I see her, it was a woman with a white dress, floating in the air! She begun to yell and I fell to me knees, my head hurting like crazy.

When she stopped I just run outside, without looking back," Marshall stopped talking, he was ashamed of his action. "I knew there were people still inside, the police told me that here weren't any dead but some people were injured, and I leave them behind."

Ophelia put tried to keep a straight face but couldn't hide a little grimace, she wasn't good comforting people, but she could at least try, right? "Hey now, is- is ok, here's no way that you could had done anything to help them- No that you were useless or anything! But, er… You did what you could I'm sure." _I'm very bad in this_ , was the only thing she could think.

"Listen what did the police, I mean with some many witness how they did react to the ghosts." She asked, desperately trying to change the subject.

"Oh? They didn't believe us of course, they thought it was someone doing a bad joke, and because nobody got kill, they just leave after helping some of the worse injures." He said, sighing sadly.

Ophelia frown a little. "Their skepticism can be a little annoying at times, but don't worry I will take care of that ghost!" She said with a reassuring smile, or what she hoped was a reassuring smile.

"I hope so, Miss Spengler, I really hope so, now, follow me, I will open the door."

 _Ok, this place is much more scarier inside_ , was the first thing that Ophelia thought after entering the library. The place was destroyed, bookshelves in the ground, books everywhere and the lights were out, yes, this place certainty looked haunted.

While walking, she begun to talk to herself to maintain the calm"Ok, ok, you can do this, you had study all about ghosts, you know the patterns, you aren't afraid of a simple library ghost," And could help a smirk when she thought of one last thing. "And you have the best toys, heh, yeah, a few shot with the AE-Pack and the ghost will be as scary as a little kid bed story." She said the last part while bringing the tool front her back.

The Anti-Ecto-Pack a.k.a. AE-Pack was Ophelia second best invention, well, it would be more precise to said that in was a collaboration work between her and her grandpa… oh, and his grandpa's friend too, after all, is base in the Proton Pack that they design years ago, years of studying ectoplasm lead Ophelia to create an opposite energy, this when enters in contact with a ghosts, 'destroy' part of the entity, if keep in contact too much the ghost would disperse, of course because they're beings of energy they would regenerate with time.

But the important thing is that after a few 'shoots' the ghost would be weakened enough to be easy to capture, well, that's the theory, of course no everything was perfect, the AE-Pack can't 'hold' a ghost like the Proton Pack was supposed to do, so the person shooting needs a very good aim, the creation of Anti-Ectoplasm is a very energy consuming process and even with nuclear power you can shot more than a few times before the tool begins to overheat, luckily that could be fixed when she gets access to ecto-energy, and the most important thing, never, ever, cross the beams.

After an hour of searching, more or less, Ophelia was begging to lose her patience.

"You know, for a ghost that causes so much chaos in daylight you sure are taking your time to appear." She muttered between her teeth.

"Come on, come on you stupid ghost, come out already!" Ophelia yelled in frustration, she has to capture this ghost or are her life work would be waste, of all the ghost she could encounter in her first time it have to be a stealthy one.

Her mental rant was interrupted by a voice with the local accent from behind her.

"You know little lady, you should yell like dat, ghost don't like it."

"AH!" Ophelia didn't think, she didn't stop to realize that the voice was of a young man, the moment she heard the voice she turn around a shot.

"Oh shit!" Was the only thing the person could say before been thrown backwards, flying a couple of meters.

It was after a few seconds later that Ophelia could calm down a little, and then she notice who she had shoot at.

It was a human, dark skin, bald, and quite muscular –his shirt don't have sleeves so she could see his muscles- the mask resembling a skull that covers his eyes and nose is a little weird –especially because it was painted in a 'Dia de Muertos' style- but without doubt he was a human.

She could only say one thing. "Oh shit."


	3. Chapter 1-2

**Chapter 1-2**

Saint Elizabeth's Public Library, Late night

"This is a mess!" Was the first thing that Charles said after entering the library.

He had received a message in his phone that afternoon about a new job, at first he thought it would be something simple, after all, is was just a ghost at a library, surely whatever she wants is something simple, right? But the more things he discovered about this ghost the more he thought that something wasn't right.

That kind of power just out of nowhere? Didn't make sense, ghost that powerful usually create some paranormal events before they manifest themselves, and to disappeared that fast, if she were a territorial ghost it would make some kind of sense, but if that were the case then she should have jumped at him already, so no, here was something else happening.

After a few minutes of finding anything Charles decide to bring the big toys, he opened the leather bag with bones that always had with him and took one of the bones in it, and then began to study it.

"Chicken bone," A smirk crossed his face. "Had to love the classics."

Pressing the bone with his hand –and closing his eyes-, Charles broke the bone, the bone began to transform in ashes, they danced and twist in the air following a no-existent wind, until the they finally move right to Charles eyes, but when the ashes touched his skin they transformed one more time, this time taking the form of a skull mask, well, half of it.

When he opened his eyes the world looked different, the lights were brighter, the shadows darker and here was a strange aura around the library, a ghost aura.

"Ok, time to hunt a bitch!" With a smile in his face Charles began to walk around the library one more time, bit this time following the aura of the ghost, to where it was stronger.

While following the tracks he suddenly stop when he noticed a strong and very strange aura coming front a different part of the library, he had never seen a aura like that before, it was bright yet dark in the same time, in the end his curiosity won and he decide to investigate.

Whatever he was expecting to find, a teenager –well she looked like one- wasn't one of them, she had very short black hair, and she was wearing a… flight suit? As a man wearing a skull mask Charles found that very weird, but what really called his attention was the strange, backpack? That the girl was wearing, it was from there that the unique aura was coming from, before the young man could decide what to do, the girl yelled.

"Come on, come on you stupid ghost, come out already!"

He should have stayed quiet, he should have stayed hidden, he could resist being a smartass.

"You know little lady, you should yell like dat, ghost don't like it."

And soon as she hears him she turned yells and shoot him, he really should have stayed quiet.

"Oh shit!" The last thing Charles saw was a green and bluish light.

"Ow ow ow." With a headache that felt like it was to crack his head it half, Charles began to wake up.

"Don't move!"

Just to have to barrel of a weapon shoved at his face, he just stared at it for a few seconds before blinking.

"…Aren't you a little young to be threating people with guns?" He said with a hint of humor in his voice.

The face of Ophelia began to change to a shade of red, from both rage and embarrassment. "Shut up! I'm the only one asking questions here!" She yelled, trying –and failing- to keep calm.

"Listen, I tink we began with de wrong foot, my name is Charles, what is a little girl-"

"I'm 20!"

"-A young woman like you doing in a library so late at night." He finished like he wasn't interrupted.

Ophelia took a few moments to think –and calm herself- if she should reply, debating with herself if it was a good idea, in the end she decide talk with the stranger, but keep ready to shoot again in any moment.

"I'm Ophelia, I was hired to capture the ghost that is haunting this place, now, answer, why are you here!?" She finished the last part shoving the barrel of the weapon against his face again.

"Whoa! Be careful with dat cher! I'm not looking for trouble; I'm on your side, see I was hired to deal with the ghost too, so we're allies." He said with a smile.

"That's impossible! Mr. Smalls didn't mention about hiring other people, do you thing I'm stupid!?" She yelled getting angrier.

"Right now I only ting that think about you is dat you have a weapon and anger issues, so what about you take a deep breath, I'm sure this have an explanation," he said with a sheepishly smile. "Look the old man surely just forgot about it, people dat old never think straight when talking about ghost."

After a few moments Ophelia lowered the barrel of the weapon and let Charles to get up. "Ok, let's say that true, let's say that you were hire as my support-"

"Hey I would go dat far."

"-What could you do? Do you have a weapon or something that could be used against ghost? Because to only thing that you seen to have is that weird mask." She finished pointing at the mask itself.

"Well, ignoring dat comment about being just support, I usually just talk to de ghosts to see what dey want and give it to dem, with the more difficult ones though, I have to use a little help from… de Other Side." When Charles said the last part, for a moment the sockets of his mask have a strong green light.

"The… 'Other Side'? Do you mean the dimension of the souls?" Ophelia asked, her curiosity overpowering her caution.

"Well, isn't exactly like that, is more like- "Chalres stop suddenly and began to move his head around as is listening for something. "Are you hearing music?"

"Hey don't try to change the subject! What do you mean-"Ophelia stopped talking when she began to hear it too. "Wait… I hear it too, it sounds like…"

"Jazz?" Charles finished for her.

Ophelia could help but to put one of her hand over her face. "What the hell is happening here!?"

Charles just smiled while moving a little, following the rhythm of the music. "I don't know, but I like it!"


	4. Chapter 1-3

Saint Elizabeth's Public Library, Near Midnight

Ophelia could help but stare at Charles.

"Are you serious?" Was the only thing she could say,

Charles simply shrugs. "What? Oh, come on cher! A little Jazz is always welcome!" He said with a big smile. "Especially if de player is using a trumpet, seriously is like people only play de Sax this days!"

Ophelia just stared a few seconds more. "Mysterious music begins to play around us in a haunted place and the only thing that your care about is the type of music!?" She yelled in frustration."

"Relax isn't the ghosts." Was the young man answers.

She just raises an eyebrow. "How do you know that?" She asked with a hint of curiosity.

"Because of this!" He pointed to his mask. "With this baby I can track the paranormal energy that the ghosts leave." He said very proud of his skill.

Any anger that Ophelia had, was replace immediately for curiosity, her eyes almost tingling with excitement. "So that's what they do! Incredible! To be able to transform ectoplasm radiation to a visible spectrum… and you say this was, magic? If I could replicate it with technology…" She couldn't finish her sentence, she stop talking focusing only in the ideas that were appearing in her mind.

Charles just had a smug smile. "Yeah, I'm kind of awesome aren't I?" He hadn't understood much of what she said, but, who was he to reject a compliment?

Ophelia minds returned to reality as soon as she heard Charles talk, remembering where she was, and with who she was talking to, a complete stranger. "Ahem –kof- Yeah, well, I had been working in a gadget to track ghost too, isn't finished yet but it should work properly."

"Oh really? And where it is?" He asked with a smirk.

The face of the young woman grew a few shades of red. "I… forgot it."

Charles just blinked. "Huh?"

Ophelia –that seems like could become more red- suddenly began to yell. "I forgot it alright! I was incredible nervous and was worried and didn't what should or shouldn't take and this had to be perfect or all my work would be waste and my uncle would hate me and-"

"OK, ok, breathe, breathe," Charles interrupted her, _maybe I should stop teasing her for now… She didn't shoot me with her gun though, nah let's give her a break_ , he thought. "Listen, is alright, it is your first mission, we all make mistakes, ok?" He tried to calm her down. "Let's just focus in de mysterious music, alright?"

Ophelia had a startle face; she could believe that she had yelled all that to a stranger that she just had met for a few second, her face would become even more red if it were possible. "Ok, ok," She answered while breathing like he told her, then her face become a frown and aimed her gun at him. "But don't think I will let my guard down! You lead I will keep an eye on you."

Charles shoulders dropped a little. "This is what happens when I try to be a nice guy?"

/

The two walked through the destroyed library to the second floor, following the music, until they found the source of the sound.

In the middle of many destroyed bookshelves was very big man with tan skin, wearing a long coat, he was playing a trumpet with great energy, his shaggy hair moving back and for.

Charles smug smile returned while he whispered. "Told ya wasn't a ghosts."

Ophelia was doing her best to keep her calm. "That doesn't mean that he isn't dangerous." She whispered too.

"Now you're just being paranoid, no one dat plays like dat can be dangerous." Charles said, turning his head to see his "captor" at the face, a smile still in his face.

"What have to do his music talent with the danger that represents?" Ophelia said between her teeth.

"I assure you miss that Ia don't want to hurt any of you." I new voice said calmly.

They had become so engrossed in their discussion that didn't hear when the music stop playing, or when the man began to walk right to them.

Here were a few seconds of silent.

Until Charles decide to talk first. "Dat was a great song!"

Ophelia just brings her right hand to her face.

Gaston on the other just smile accepting the compliment. "Thanks, though sadly it seems that it didn't accomplished its objective." He finished with a little disappointment in his voice.

"Oh? And what was de song supposed to do?" Charles asked, a little more relaxed now. "Oh, and I'm Charles by de way and this is Ophelia." He said pointing at the woman, how still had her hand in her face and was murmuring something that sounded like 'I'm the only sane woman'. "We were hired to stop the ghost."

"Oh! Where are my manners! I'm Gaston," The giant said bowing a little. "I was hired to stop the ghost too! And I was trying to attract the ghosts with music; it works most of the time." He finished with a calm smile.

That sentence makes Ophelia react. "Wait, what? You were trying to lure a ghost with music!" She asked incredulous.

Gaston, oblivious to her surprise answered calmly. "Oh yes, many ghosts had very strong reactions to emotions and music is a perfect way to convey an emotion in a wide area."

Ophelia just kept staring at Gaston, her mind thinking of the possibilities.

"So I just needed bring a radio with me to attract a ghost? Wish I would have known that a long time age" Charles asked with a little of wonder and annoyance in his voice.

Gaston just laughs a little. "Oh no no, ss more complicated than that, for one the music must be at live, real emotions can't be recorded, and two, different kind of music affect ghosts in different ways, even the same music can affect two ghosts in very different ways." He warned.

At this Ophelia raise an eyebrow. "Huh? But how can you know what kind of music-" Her question was interrupted by a loud yell.

"LEAVE ME ALONE!"

The yell echoed in all the library, and cause a brief headache to the group.

Above them, floating at the middle of the air, was young looking woman, wearing a white cloak, she was incredible pale and her hair was red, almost like it was on fire, and of course, she was see-through.

"Ah, my song worked after all!"

Ophelia put her hand on her face again.


	5. Chapter 1-4

Saint Elizabeth's Public Library, Midnight

"Everybody, get to cover!" Charles yelled while running behind some bookshelf that were still standing.

Ophelia almost attacks the ghosts immediately, ignoring Charles, but in the end she decided to make a tactical retreat and follows him, isn't like she wasn't scared or anything, she just wanted to analyze the situation better, that's all.

Gaston on the other hand, wasn't so lucky; before he could do anything the ghost threw dozens of books at his direction, practically burying him in them.

The ghost then began to move around the library looking for the other intruders.

"Do you think he's alright?" Ophelia asked Charles in whispers hiding behind the bookshelf.

Charles stared the pile of books that had the ally for a moment. "Suuuuuure? He seemed like a strong guy, he can take it… probably."

The young ghost hunter wasn't completely sure about his answer, but isn't like the could make anything else at the moment. "What now then?"

"Well usually I just ask de ghost what dey want and give it to dem, normally is something simple," Charles explained, in the distance they could hear an explosion followed by some books flying around. "But this time it may be a little more difficult." He finished with a sheepishly smile.

Ophelia just look at him for a few moments. "I'm going to shoot her." Was the only thing she said before going out of cover and running to were the ghost could be heard.

"…Ok, I will… I tink, I just going to rescue Gaston from his tomb of books." He really wanted to help her, but he had the feeling that they would need all the help they could get.

/

Ophelia heard the ghost before looking at it.

"LET ME GO YOU MONSTERS."

The hunter was a confuse for the sentence, she knew that some ghost's mind were trapped in the moment of their dead, but those were usually very weak ghost, and considering the destruction that this one had cause, she certainty wasn't weak, well Ophelia could analyze her after capturing her.

She prepared herself when she was close enough to the ghost, she aimed the barrel of the AE-Pack right at the ghost and took a big breath, _ok, you can do this, your first ghost, can do it, time to make grandpa proud_ , she thought, then she pressed the trigger… and failed.

The beam of energy passed very close to the ectoplasm being, but missing for a few centimeters and Ophelia could help but yell in frustration. "OH COME ON!"

The ghost immediately rushes at her.

"GO AWAY!"

Her yell makes Ophelia fall to her knees at pain, then a bunch of books controlled by the ghost crash at her, sending her flying across the place, right to the side of the pile were Gaston was.

Charles –that were to taking some of the books off the pile- just stared wide eye at her, before a little smirk appeared in his face. "Did you catch her already?"

"Ughhhh" Was the only thing Ophelia could say.

"Are you alright?" The smirk fade from Charles face a little bit of worry could be heard in his voice.

"Ye… Yeah." Was the young woman answer, with all her strength she did a thumps up.

"What were you tinking? Even if you could hurt de ghosts with dat strange weapon of yours den what? You can't just kill a ghost, dey just reform later." Charles asked with a rise eyebrow.

"I –ugh- I was going to… -uff- to use this to capture it." Ophelia said raising a small cube in her hand.

The cube was of the side of a small ball, with yellow and black lines to its sides and here was a hatch in all the sides.

"Huh? What does dat d-" Before he could finish his question, they were interrupted by the ghost one more time.

But before the dead woman could reach them, Gaston raises from the piles of books with his trumpet at hand.

"No one is lauder than Gaston!" He then took a huge breath of air all blow it all in his instrument, the loud noise make the ghost stop in the middle of the air, twisting at pain.

Charles looked from the ghost to the strange cube in Ophelia's hand, and with a shrug he took it a throws it at the ghost.

Luckily the cube fell right under the ghost, for a few moments nothing happened, until the cube suddenly releases an implosion that absorbed the ghost inside it.

Gaston stopped and hear was just silence.

"…That joke was bad." Ophelia said still in the floor.

Gaston for his part just blushed a little. "It was Mister Charles idea… I thought is a bit funny too." He whispered the last part.

Charles just chuckled. "Yeah we wanted to surprise the bitch, and what I just told you Gaston? Is just Charles," He said smacking the huge man in the back. "And what was that cube anyway? It was awesome!" He asked while offering his hand alongside Gaston to help Ophelia to get up.

This time it was Ophelia turn to blush. "Thanks, I invented… well I use an old blueprint and make some modifications, is less powerful than the original, but more safe to use and easy to make in mass, and thanks to the proton implosion the ghost don't need to be move! I call it 'Ghost Cube'!" She answered with a smile, accepting their hands.

Gaston raised a hand to his chin while pondering about something. "'Ghost Cube'… Isn't that a reference to something else?"

"N- NO!" The blush in the face of Ophelia just got redder.

Charles had a big smile in his face. "Are you sure? I tink a heard something similar but with monster? I tink it was called Po-"

"I said no!"

Charles and Gaston just laughed a little, the ambient much more relaxed now that their job was done.

Until they began to hear the sound of hands clapping slowly.

From the shadows an old man comes out, an old man that they had seen this night, Marshall Smalls, that man that had hire them.

"Excellent job young ones! Now if isn't much trouble, could you give me that ghost?" He asked while extending his hand.


	6. Chapter 1-5

Saint Elizabeth's Public Library, After Midnight

"I have a bad felling about this." Charles was the first person to break the silence.

"Hum… Mister Smalls sorry, but I can leave you the ghost, is very dangerous and need to be properly secure." Ophelia tried to explain.

Sadly her words were falling at deaf ears.

Marshall Smalls just stayed in silence, listening to the explanation of why having the ghost was a bad idea, the shadow of the building hiding his eyes.

Then he began to walk right to Ophelia. "My dear, it seems like you misunderstand me! I was asking." he whispered the last part, but before he could get closer to the young hunter, Gaston put a hand on the old man shoulder.

"Mister Smalls, I understand that you may be angry with this ghost after all the things that she did, but believe us, we have everything under control." The giant of a man tried to explain.

After a few second of silence the old man begun to chuckle, then begun to laugh. "Hahahahaha! Oh no young man, I assure you, you don't control anything." Marshall Smalls was a little and fragile man, without doubt he was the kind of man that need help with difficult tasks, so when he use his right hand to hold Gaston writs it was a surprise that he manage to hurt him, then slowly the Mister Smalls raised his head to see Gaston right to his eyes.

When Gaston looked at the old man eyes he could help but to take a step back surprise at the bright red eyes, suddenly the Marshall Smalls began to transform in front of everybody, his body turn black as the night, he grown twice his size, his ears become pointed and his jaw was full of very sharp teeth, and the fingers of his hands turned into claws –one that was still holding Gaston wrist- Overall it looked like a demon… in an old man suit.

With ease the demon rise Gaston to his face and began to talk, his voice deep and distorted. "Like I say, I wasn't asking!" Then he throws the young hunter right at Charles.

"Agh!"

And change his attention at Ophelia again. "I won't repeat myself again dear, give the ghost. NOW!"

Ophelia was scared, no she terrified, no even worse she was confused, the man that was is front of her, the man that had hire her for her first job, had just become in some kind of demon, a part of her couldn't stop asking question, what it was? How could transform like that? Why it wants the ghost? But another part of her, a bigger part, just wanted to run away from the horrible beast in front of her.

"Wh… Why do yo… you want her?" Ophelia managed to ask, trying to calm herself and win some time.

"Tsk tsk dear, that is secret, one that you don't need to know, now it seems that I will need to take that ghost from your hands, such a shame really, but you should thank me, I will kill you fast, if it were some of my other colleagues… Well, it's better if you don't know, now, just close your eyes." But before the demon could move, Ophelia took her gun and shoot and the monster, right at his face, unfortunately the monsters was capable of resisting the energy of the gun, and just was move a few inches backwards.

"Ugh, That's some nasty toy you have here my dear, that's probably going to hurt in the morning, well it seems that we're going to do this the hard way, remember that it was your choice when you are in ground in a pool of you own blood." Immediately the demon ran towards one of the shadows of the library, disappearing.

Ophelia just stand still, shocked in her own actions, before she ran towards her allies.

"Guys? Guys come on get up, the demon, monster or whatever just disappeared in the shadows and could attack in any moment, we need to move!" She yelled while shaking the two bodies in the ground.

Charles was the first in waking up. "Ughhhh Gaston what do you eat you fat bastard, get off me." He complained.

"Ugh, I apologize Charles." Gaston answered sheepishly.

Ophelia in the other hand was beginning to lose her patience. "Lest apologizes and more moving! Demon monster thing, hiding in the shadows!"

After a few moments -filled with more complains and apologizes- both men were up and ready.

"Ok, seriously what de hell is happening? Did de old man dat hired us just become a demon? cause dat's dark magic of very high grade, either he's a human dat can use demon or a demon dat can transform into a human, in any case we need to get out of here, we can't fight dat thing." Charles explained with a little bit of fear in his eyes.

"What? No, we can't just leave like cowards! Don't you want to know what is happening here? Why this monster was here at the first place? And what if it end hurting others?" Ophelia said in return, here was fear in her eyes just like Charles, but they had a bit of determination too.

Charles sighed with sadness. "Listen I get it, you're frustrated, but if you're going to enter de world of de supernatural you need to accept dat here are some things dat are simply too strong, believe me I had to learn dat lesson too," He answered with a frown. "Beside for all we know the monster is playing with us right now waiting for us to make a plan before getting out of the shadows ready to kill us."

Gaston, that was simply watching the discussion from the side, decide that moment to talk. "If I may, I think I know where to get some answers, but we should get to a safer place first." He said while letting his eyes travel right to ghost cube of Ophelia.

The other two hunters followed his eyes.

"Oh you have to be kidding."


	7. Chapter 1-6

Saint Elizabeth's Public Library, After Midnight

"No, no, no, n and o, NO!" Ophelia kept repeating while following Charles and Gaston, that were walking for the library looking for a seclude place.

"Listen I know dat this may be a little strange to you." Charles tried to explain.

"You think!"

"Considering dat probably all you know of ghost comes from old books and de internet."

"…Maybe."

"But sometimes ghost can help people, under certain conditions… and if you have something dat dey want." He finished.

"But after all the risk that we take, you just want to let her go just like that!? What if she just runs away without talking with us!?" Ophelia argued.

"Ah that's when I can come at handy Miss Ophelia, with this!" Gaston answered while bringing a flute out of his long coat.

"Ok first, just call me Ophelia, and two, if you could calm her with your 'magic music' why didn't you do it from the beginning?" The young scientific asked, still irritated.

Gaston smiled a little, "Very well Ophelia! And about your question is pretty simple, I couldn't! You see, she was quite strong at first, but after you shoot her with your weird weapon-"

"The AE-Pack."

"-Her energy drop a lot! Now I can use a gently song to calm her down, if we're lucky she would cooperate with us."

Ophelia wasn't completely convinced, but decide to concede the point, they have means to calm the ghost, still…

"Ok, ok, but we're just going to do that in the open? The demon Smalls would probably choice when we're distracted to attack!" She said, trying to find any excuse that would avoid releasing the ghost.

Charles decide that moment to stop, making the other two stop too, the group were in one of the corners of the library, then he turned around to face his new allies with a smug smile and then began to talk, "I will take care of dat cher, Or I should say, my friends will take care of dat, now, everybody please don't move no matter what you see, my friends really like when I put a good shown so I tend to be a little… dramatic, you could say."

"Why I think that that isn't really a problem for you?" Ophelia whispered.

Charles then proceeds to open his leather bag and began to look for something inside, "Let's see, two bones of cats, three of moles aaaaaand one of a owl! Perfect, now, prepare to be amaze!" He said while crushing all the bones that he took between his hands.

Ophelia raised her eyebrow wondering how Charles could distinguish between all the same looking bones, Gaston on the other looked in wonder while the bones transformed into dust, which then began to circle around the three of them until they couldn't see anything more than a grey dome.

"My friends! We need a hand, for a demon have us in his sight! We need a shadow! We need to hide! We need a place impossible to find!" When Charles finished talking the dust began to become darker and darker until it was completely black.

"Ok that should work a few minutes." The young man said with a smirk.

Gaston clapped with a big smile in his face, "Incredible, amazing Charles, you're quite the talented sorcerer my friend!"

"Heh thanks, though I prefer de term Witch Doctor, I mean, here are some differences but is de closes thing."

Ophelia just stared with an open jaw, "…WHAT!"

"Before you ask why I didn't asked my friends to help me with de ghost, besides asking for this beautiful mask, de answers is quite simple, dey don't like deir 'friends' to be lazy bums, ask for something to look for a ghost? Help hiding a moment while tinking of a plan? No problem, ask for de ghost to be captured? Not happening." Charles hastily explained, expecting the question.

Ophelia just kept staring for a few seconds more before taking a big breath, "Ok, you now what? I give up, my brain can't deal with this right now, so I will just watch and ask question in the end, do you want to talk to the ghost that throw us around like if the library were a giant pinball machine? Be my guess!"

She finally said while throwing the ghost cube in the air –shocking both Gaston and Charles-, the cube promptly opened, releasing a very confused ghost that began to look around trying to understand where she was.

Before the ghost could say anything –or yell anything- Gaston began to play a very soothing song with his flute, filling the inside of the black dome with a relaxing environment.

The panicking ghost was visibly beginning to calm down, her hair red like fire become a few shades more dark, and her eyes –before completely white- were normal looking with a blue color.

"Whe… where I am?" Was the first thing that the ghost said.

Charles took a step forward preparing to explain the situation to the death lady –Gaston was busy playing and Ophelia need a few moments to collect herself, so the responsibility was on his shoulders- "Humm Hello dere cher, I'm Charles and dese are my friends Gaston and Ophelia, we're in a library right now, do you remember how you came here?" He said in a calm voice.

The ghost visibly flinched, like if she hadn't notice that here were other people with her, "Ah… um… I see… this doesn't look like any library that had seems before though." She answered in a very low voice, "Oh! My name is… Faith?... That can't be right, but, I'm sure that's my…"The ghost just kept murmuring to herself after that.

Charles didn't know what to do, in one hand the ghost was talking to him without destroying his eardrums, in the other it seems that she was too confuse too say anything useful, he looked at his friends asking for help with his eyes, but they just shrugged, he just rolled his eyes.

"Listen… Faith, my friends and I need a little help, here's a… monster out here dat want to hurt us, do you know anything about it? Any information could be useful, really."

Faith stops murmuring and stared at Charles direction for a moment before answering, "Yeah… A black monster, I remember, but… You need to do something for my first." She said without blinking.

Charles could help but to sigh, "Of course, what do you need?"

"I want you to find my body."


End file.
